Ten Forever
by Could Not Think of a Good Name
Summary: An old man looks back on his many adventures as a child, and ultimately, he smiles. One-shot.


**Author's Notes: Okay... So, I'm not entirely sure how this story happened. I was just watching some old episodes of the Pokemon anime to understand some stuff needed for "Or Fire and Ashes," and this idea hit me like a truck. I know I should really be working on another one of my projects right now (round 27 of "Pokemon Adventures: AshGray Chapter" will be re-released soon). I know I should probably be writing something "PokeSpe" related (Ash is really stealing the spotlight, atm), but once I got this idea in my head, I could not get it out until I wrote it all down. I think it's actually surprisingly deep, very relatable, and a fairly different take on Pokemon. It's a style that I have not used until now, but I love it. I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did.**

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own or have any rights to any part of the Pokemon franchise whatsoever. **

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**Ten Forever**

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Imagination never seems to get the credit it deserves. Sure, there are some people who go on and on about how important it is to have a vision or how necessary it is for you to see potential in everything- on a good day you might even be able to run across a guy brave enough to recite that famous Einstein quote, "Imagination is more important than knowledge."- but rarely are any of them talking about _real_ imagination.

You see, society has, for the most part, redefined _'imagination'_ to fit what they find to be acceptable.

"Oh! You need to _imagine_ your ideal body!"

"_Imagine_ what you are capable of with a little hard work!"

"Your dream can never become a reality if you don't have a little _imagination!"_

"Are those your only ambitions? Have some _imagination!"_

I'm not talking about any of that. I am talking about cold, hard, 100% pure, unadulterated imagination. The kind of stuff that allows kids to travel through time with cardboard boxes. The kind of stuff that brings stuffed animals to life. Yes, even the kind of stuff that puts monsters under your bed. _That_ imagination.

People underestimate its true value.

It's classified as a coping mechanism. It's a place children go to escape the harsh realities of "real life." Sometimes adults are kind enough to call it a natural byproduct of youth (or some similar title), but none of this does it any justice. No one ever takes the time to consider exactly how phenomenal imagination is.

You will look at a bent up coat hanger, and a child will call it a laser gun! How incredible is it that he is capable of creating a laser gun out of thin air like that?! Meanwhile, people held down in "real life" are stuck spending years and years indulging in painstaking research, gathering hundred man teams, and pushing through miles of red tape only to eventually have their "laser gun" project shut down due to lack of time, funding, or interest. The kid can have a laser gun created in seconds and be shooting entire _swarms_ of aliens before you can even finish up the paperwork to request building a laser gun!

Imagination might as well be considered reality warping. No matter how old you are or what you think now, there was once a time when you could create an _entire_ _person_ out of thin air, and after you stole your mother's cookies and blamed it on your new invisible friend, you were devastatingly shocked that your parents still somehow found out it was you! It seemed perfectly reasonable that your new friend took the cookies! He was _right there_ in the room with you! What gave you away?

Yes, there was once a time when you could shrug off the boring laws of this universe, jump into a vast landscape of your own design, and create a new reality of infinite possibilities. There would be friends, enemies, monsters, and everything else! You name it.

I did that once too.

It was around the age of ten.

I called them Pocket Monsters!

I still remember it like it was yesterday. My mom was always busy, so when she wasn't around, I would take my stuffed mouse outside and play games with him. I didn't have many friends growing up, so I made some up myself! I called them all Pocket Monsters!

Some might say that it was weird for a ten-year-old boy to play with stuffed animals, but I didn't care. Pocket Monsters was the best game I ever came up with! I would simply slip through the boundaries of reality to bring my mouse to life (he did not quite like this at first), and then we would travel through vast and incredible landscapes on a number of dangerous and extraordinary adventures. We fought bad guys. We made friends. We captured other Pocket Monsters. And we were always training to be the best duo around!

As time passed, my new world slowly became more elaborate, and I decided to let more people in. Eventually, that annoying redhead from across the street came over to play. I never really liked her, but what fun is having such an amazing world if you never get to share it with anyone?

I was even cool enough to let my babysitter in on the whole thing. I don't think he ever quite saw the world the same way I could (primarily because he was getting to that age were all boys seem to _lose_ their imaginations at the expense of girls), but he still manipulated the laws fairly well, and he stopped the redhead and I from killing each other, so kudos for that.

Anyway, my point is that the world grew and grew as time went on, and I explored every inch of it. When I was done exploring one area, I created another one. When I was done having fun with my Pocket Monsters, I created more of them. The universe stretched out endlessly, constantly getting more complex to suit my fancy, but I made absolutely sure to never actually accomplish anything!

…Or …well …That's not entirely true. I accomplished things. Many things, as a matter of fact. I saved the world countless times! But remember how I said my mouse and I were training to be the best duo around? I made sure we never actually _became _the best duo around. Because if that ever happened, then my world would not have a purpose anymore! I wouldn't have anything to do! What fun would that be? I knew that it would almost definitely end with me having to leave that world and face "real life."

Little did I know, _that_ was pretty much inevitable.

Adults have a habit of saying "youth is wasted on the young," and there is some truth to that. Kids often feel like childhood will last forever. I felt like I could be ten forever. I was wrong.

You see, my universe had a serious flaw in it. I kept letting more kids know about it. The redhead may have been the first to journey with me into the endless world of Pocket Monsters, but she was not the last. She eventually out grew it.

Her life became bogged down with lipstick and cell phones and shopping. She slowly slipped into what the rest of society called "real life," and she lost her ability to warp reality just like everyone else does.

I tried to get her back a few times- it's ironic how I originally could not stand her and then later valued her companionship more than she could fathom- but she was only ever able to enter my world for short spells. More often than not, she was just too caught up in the other world to enjoy mine.

This happened a few times, becoming somewhat of a cycle. My mouse and I would be traveling through our world and testing our limits, then eventually someone would approach us with the desire to join in the fun. Being good sports, we would let them in of course, and then we would all travel together for a while. Then, they would leave. I had no problem with the cycle. If other people did not want to be in my world, then I shouldn't force them to stay, but _I_ was having a hoot!

Then came the day that one of my traveling companions approached me outside of my world. Contrary to the normal routine of _them _asking to join _me_ in _my_ adventures, she instead asked that _I_ join _her_ in "real life" for a birthday party. Normally, I would decline such an invitation (I really preferred my world to this one), but I understood that birthdays were very special events, so I agreed to tag along.

I really enjoyed it.

Going to that birthday party was some of the most fun I had in my entire life. I met old friends there. I made new ones. There were no Pocket Monsters, and I had to leave my mouse at home, but that was all okay. The party was fantastic, and I left my friend's house with a big bag of candy, several phone numbers, and at least four kids telling me we should hang out sometime.

So we did.

I still enjoyed my world of Pocket Monsters, but I had to commute between it and "real life" to hang out with my friends. It was a lot harder than it sounds. As things picked up and more people came on the scene, I was forced to spend less and less time testing my reality warping.

Junior high eventually started up, and then I barely had any time _at all!_ First, homework got more complicated. Then, all the sudden, I had more than one teacher- like one wasn't bad enough! My mom began pushing me to do better in school because grades were about to start counting. I honestly don't know how I survived!

I don't remember how it happened exactly, but one day after I returned home from my first date _ever_ with a longtime best friend, I skipped over to my room to tell my stuffed mouse the good news only to find him smiling back at me with tears in his eyes and a large golden trophy in his tiny paws. The engraving read _'Number 1 Pokémon Master in the World' _with my name scrawled below in big, bold letters. We had become the best. I did not know how or why, but I had somehow achieved all that I needed in my world of Pocket Monsters. That universe no longer had a purpose, and although I could not remember the battle, the victory ceremony, or even the other opponent, my mouse slowly faded from existence along with the trophy, and I stared back into the vacant glass eyes of a stuffed animal that sat soundly upon my bed.

I never did much with my mouse after that. I tried to talk to him again. I tried to create more Pocket Monsters and journey to other worlds with different purposes, but it always seemed like there was something more important to do. Talking to my mouse really paled in comparison to finishing my big science project. The next time I thought about exploring a vast jungle or mysterious cave, I realized that finding a date for the Prom was probably a higher priority.

My mouse could not journey with me to college or give a big speech at my wedding. He did not show up for my graduation or witness the miraculous birth of my daughter, who we honestly thought wouldn't make it due to asthma. He _was _there at my mother's funeral- if only for a second. As the thousands of childhood memories passed through my mind, I think I _did _see him looking down in the casket for a moment. But that was the last I heard of him or the magical world of Pocket Monsters.

"Real life" seems to be where all the action happens these days. And "real life" is tough. My imagination has to take a backseat to my other responsibilities. When there are bills to pay, jobs to work, and families to raise, I really need all the brain power I can get. And that means sacrificing a little bit of reality warping.

Imagination taught me more about "real life" then I ever gathered from a book, a movie, a teacher, or a class, which is why when my little girl looked up at me this morning and said, "Chase and me are goin' to climb Mt. Everest today, Daddy! Do you have any climbing gear we can use?" I rubbed under my chin for a few seconds before admitting, "No, sweetheart. I don't think I do, but you've got bigger problems."

She tilted her head to the side.

"How are you going to fend off all the wild animals?"

"Oh no! I didn't think about that!" she exclaimed, "You got any jaguar repellant?!"

With a completely straight face, I rose up from my chair, went over to my closet, and dusted off an old stuffed friend from the top shelf before letting her know, "This is Pikachu. I know he looks like he's just a harmless mouse, but he's actually the toughest guy I know. He controls lightning and can electrocute monsters with over 1,000 volts from his cheeks alone!"

Words could not express the pure happiness and excitement on her face as she hugged my oldest companion to her chest and he entered into her world of new adventures and endless possibilities.

If only we could be ten forever.

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**This short fic is dedicated to every fan that grew up with Pokemon. Every fan who also ventured into the world of Pocket Monsters as a child. May your hearts be ten forever, even when your bodies are not.  
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